The International infrastructure group Balfour Beatty said yesterday it had been awarded two contracts, together worth about £43.5 million, for a major upgrade of the north electricity network.
The work was awarded by Scottish Hydro Electric Transmission, which is part of Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN), for the Beauly to Keith 132 kilovolt (kV) power line modernisation project.
One contract worth about £36m covers the design, supply, installation, construction and commissioning of the overhead line works across a 64-mile route between Beauly, Nairn, Elgin and Keith.
The second contract, worth about £7.5m, covers the design, engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning of underground cabling.
Balfour Beatty has been collaborating with SSEN through the feasibility and development stages of the project since early 2017.
Andy Smith, operations director for the group’s power transmission and distribution business in Scotland, said: “This project shows our ability to bring together both overhead line and cabling capability under a single programme of works.”
SSEN aims to increase the 132kV network capacity of the power line, while also replacing assets nearing the end of their working life.
The overhead line running between Beauly and Keith was built in 1955 and is a key part of Scotland’s transmission system. Modernisation is expected to help secure north electricity supply.
At its peak, the three-year upgrade will employ about 110 people.